Ruth Bachofner Gallery

Margaret Griffith

Santa Monica, CAUSAsamedi 8 septembre 2012 ‐ samedi 13 octobre 2012

Ruth Bachofner Gallery is pleased to present an exhibition of new work by Los Angeles-based artist Margaret Griffith. There will be a reception for the artist Saturday, September 8, 4-6 PM.

For this exhibition, Margaret Griffith presents a monumental paper-based installation based on gates found in her Highland Park neighborhood. Beginning with photo documentation, Griffith then uses large sheets of paper to create hand cut replicas of the gates. In the exhibition space, the solid, architectural features are stripped of function and context; steel structures are transformed into fragile, billowy paper forms suspended over viewer’s heads, attached to walls and spread across the floor. Included in the show is an audio piece, consisting of interviews with the artist’s neighbors.

Griffith states, “I am looking at how a community visually defines itself by the boundaries it constructs, and the metaphorical relationship between spirit and urbanism. As symbols of theft, fear, isolation and possession, gates also represent confinement as well as protection...I am including other perspectives as well through the inclusion of the audio piece. Residents speak about their own history, where they are from, why they have a gate and what it represents to them.”

The physical fragility of the work brings further focus to impermanence and permeability. The gates Griffith documents, are rendered soft, delicate, intimate, tangible and beautiful through her cuts. As she creates a narrative between her work and the immediate environment, the paper itself becomes part of the dialogue. From solid paper, to perforated mass, to physically imposing installation, the character of paper, its limits, its reaction to the environment and its own weight becomes integral to the experience.

“I am using paper as my creative medium because it is lightweight, accessible, efficient and straight forward. Paper is thin, delicate and versatile. It allows me to work in a variety of scales and has an inherent intimacy. As my trajectory focuses on permanence as fiction, choosing a medium that is fragile to represent a chain link or steel gate is important.”